I agree. If you're looking at coilovers, the Bilstein PSS-Damtronic coilover is the way to go, simply because it retains the use of the factory PASM system in the car to adjust the dampening.

KW does make a V3 coilover for the 997.2, however, it requires disabling the factory PASM system, as the adjustment to compression/rebound are made on the shocks themselves, manually.

 

What I recall:
For Non-PASM cars.
PSS9's - 9-way manually adjustable and height adjustable coilovers....pretty sure these were being phased out, could be wrong
PSS10's - 10-way manually adjustable and height adjustable coilovers
For PASM
Damptronics- Height adjustable coilvoers that work with OEM PASM system......contact Bilstien for specifics but pretty sure they have similer internal electronic valving that PASM shocks would.....PASM system would function and so does dash switch.

Needless to say, normal advantage of a coilover system is you have the control to tweek the system and get it right.....set height anywhere, set rake, corner balance (w/adjustable DLs), align.....and if you get it too low, adjust til you get it right.

Wife' C4S Cab w/PASM (10mm) we dropped another 20mm....worked well.
I have both H&R and Bilstien systems on dif Pcars...There are other quality products besides H&R & Bil. Good installation is important. Wife's car does not have the 'Bilstien clunk' I've heard others talk about....some think that's install. I'm fortunate to have Kelly Moss as my local speed shop.
Another good source for suspension advice....Mike @ AWE.....always helpful.
Good luck.....nice looking car!

 

First of all... how did you get the LED and headlight on at the same time? The LED dims when I turn on my headlight, but it seems to be on at full intensity in your photo.



As for lowering, I know what you mean. I finally could not stand the extended wheel gap for the factory setup. So, I went with KW's V3. Installed on car for 2 weeks, using half-way setting for compression and rebound. Feels a lots tighter than before. I used it as a daily driver, and it's not nearly as harsh as I thought it would be. Probably going to adjust it to harder setting on the weekend and see how it goes.

The only downside so far is the occasional "clunking"... I'm pretty sure it's from the short secondary spring. It's kinda strange, I only get clunking when I'm on relatively smooth but waving road. But there's no clunking at all for bumpy roads or road joints.

 

i get the clunking on my E46 with PSS9 even during super slow speed on a paved road. the shop looked at it and said they can't find anything wrong. I thought I'm the only one, and now K&W on P have it too.

is the clunking normal?

 

Damptronic....997.2 C4S Cab......no clunking.

 

Wow just noticed the front window is insanely dark ! Looks awesome though !

 

Unless you've got money to burn, bad idea. Labor is basically the same for either, parts is where the difference in the price is. Why pay for labor twice. Pick what you want to go with and do it rather than springs first and C/O's later.

FWIW, I've got TechArt springs on my car, PASM continues to work perfectly and have no regrets. Lot's and lots of threads and opinions here on springs vs. C/O's.

Interesting to see how high your car came stock as I started a thread awhile back asking about ride height of cars destined for the U.S. versus rest of world and it seemed that only cars headed to the U.S. were set-up with the huge wheel-well gap.
https://www.6speedonline.com/forums/...est-world.html

 

Yes, it seems to only happens during slow speed, around 30km/h. Clunking disappears at high speed or rough roads.



I thought about going lowering springs first, then install coilover later on. Then I thought about paying the installation cost twice (it's not cheap for our cars)... so, I decided to go with KW V3. And the key factor for choosing coilovers over springs is that, the coilovers gives me the option of height adjustment... for show or for performance, depending on the mood.

 

Gee, I'm really thinking about getting lowering springs for my car (as I mentioned to Joe Shark a bit back). I thought it would be a relatively cheap install - just how much does it cost on average to install?!

 

Some may be under this impression. However, it's not like you can turn the collars on Friday night, hit the track, then turn the collars back on Sunday night. They are not easy to adjust and you need an alignment specific to the ride height. If you don't like the ride height, you CAN have the suspension raised or lowered by your shop - plus the new alignment. In order to set it up even (or even to corner balance it), your shop is going to charge a few hours labor to do it. PLUS the $250-400 alignment. I would go for an adjustable shock set with fixed springs. Set ride height and adjustable shocks. Unfortunately, not really available for these cars. Anyway, the coilovers are still the setup of choice to get matched springs and dampers. Set the ride height you want and forget them.

Oh, and with the aerokit you will find yourself vaporizing the front lip, which I see you've painted. Depending on where you live and how **** you are, you could be replacing it every 6 months.

When we're talking about ride height, I didn't really check, but I'm guessing that is a standard Carrera and not an S. Really compelled me to get the S - lower stock ride height.

 

While people talk about the install being the same. It isn't. Installing coilovers also requires adjustment and corner balancing if desired. Chances are, you need to set the collars, check the height and balance with the car on the ground, then jack it up or put in on a rack and adjust the collars. Lower the car and repeat. Probably takes a couple times to get it right. Maybe I was taken before, but I paid 4 hours labor to have COs set up.

Springs are installed with 3-4 hours labor plus an alignment. Aftermarket springs are not a perfect match for stock dampers; that's why they're not a perfect solution. But they can work well, improve appearance and performance. Yes, if you go to CO's later, you'll pay another 3-4 hours labor PLUS the cost to set them up, PLUS another alignment. They are a better, matched solution to more performance.

 

I have Techart springs on my car and after speaking to Bryan at RSS, Im convinced to go w/ Bilstein coilovers soon. Though I don't track the car very often (once or twice a year), I think the setup just make sense since both the springs and struts are designed to work together. It's nice to know that you have it there just incase you need to use it for those spirited driving. After all, you are driving a Porsche. You don't always floor it, but it's just nice to know that when you want to, it's there.

 

One other option which hasn't been mentioned is the dynamically adjustable lift kit that allows you to press a button while driving under a certain speed to raise the front lip 1-2". I live in a high-rise condo in midtown Atlanta and have to get in and out of a parking garage - I want the lowered look but not the body damage from ramps/speed bumps.

If only I had the $8k+ to spend on the lift kit - problem solved, but crazy expensive! I can't remember the vendor, but they advertize in Panorama magazine.

Awesome ride btw! Like someone else said, the painted front lip may be something to reconsider when you have to replace it. I actually like it unpainted (like OEM 997TT) because it doesn't show the scrapes as much.

 

For the price of a lift kit installed running $8k as you have stated (I don't have the exact cost but I do know it's at least a couple of grand), you can buy a lot of the replacement lips. They only cost about $200 and are very easy to install.

 

Hey Scoper,

Can't remember without digging up my bill but I think the labor including the wheel alignment was somewhere around $700 - $800.